Ever hear yourself say, “I wish I’d known then what I know now”? Over the last 20 years the home building industry has identified many operational elements that lead to customer satisfaction. Much of this wisdom has been gained through trial and error, some from old-fashioned hard work, and all of it from paying attention, thinking, and caring about customers.
In spite of the insights builders have earned, busy schedules can prevent those insights from being applied. (Ironically, the problems that result make those schedules even busier.) Stop for a moment and take stock of your company within this larger context of customer service best practices and then ask, “Where should we go from here?”
Screen customers. Customers from hell do not wear a sign, but builders often remark later, “We had a bad feeling about these people.” Learn to trust that feeling and avoid accepting a contract just to make a quota. The cost is too great. As Al Trellis so aptly says, “Never underestimate the benefit of referring an unreasonable customer to your competition.”
Educate your buyers. Take advantage of the buyers’ open-mindedness during your early contacts with them. As prospects shop for the right builder, they are in information-gathering mode; they are hungry for facts and details; they are asking questions. Use these teachable moments.
They offer the best time to volunteer information about your product, your process, and your services. Identify the topics that cause problems later (such as change orders, delivery date, site visits, home inspectors, and the warranty process) and find positive ways to present your points early. The deeper buyers are into the process, the tougher it will be to get new information accepted.
Set up a communication schedule. Create a system of letters, post cards, e-mail updates, and casual contact by staff to keep buyers feeling informed and involved. Someone should speak with every buyer every week, or even more often. For example, a monthly card updating the buyer to changes in the target delivery date can reinforce your earlier statements about the fact that the delivery date will move. Even if you know the buyer is out of town on business, e-mail a digital photo of the roof going on the house.
Empathize with buyer emotions. If you have not built a new home for yourself in the last two or three years, do so. Go through all the excitement, worry, and work. Nothing will put you in touch with what buyers go through like direct experience. Failing that, keep in mind that your clients own that home from the day they sign the contract—emotionally and psychologically, if not financially. Empathy can go a long way toward maintaining a healthy relationship. Act as if you like your customers.
Plan proactive touches. If you want a reputation that includes service excellence, you must serve. This means looking for inconveniences to eliminate, answering questions before they are asked, and guiding buyers through the process. Identify some actions you can take that will make the buyers say, “Wow, how thoughtful!” For example, a week before closing give buyers a couple dozen change of address note cards that say, “We’ve moved to our new [your company name] home.” They can alert friends and family to their new address and advertise your company at the same time. Best of all, they won’t be expecting this.
Practice quick response. When today’s customers contact you about a question or concern, they are looking at the second hand on their watch. Respond quickly. Although you may not have an immediate answer, you can give an immediate acknowledgment. Provide a date for supplying a response and then follow through.
Make rigorous follow-through a way of life. Reliability is a hallmark of good companies. If you commit to taking some action, take it. By documenting every commitment, you have a better chance of completing all of them. Nothing builds buyer confidence and satisfaction like a company that does what it says it will do. In fact, one government study showed that reliability is the No. 1 trait customers hope for when they do business.
Gather feedback. Although J.D. Power and Associates may be out of your volume and price range, giving your home buyers opportunities to tell you what it was like doing business with your company is doable. Use your Web site, post cards, phone surveys, focus groups, or a couple of written surveys to ask for feedback. Carefully consider the responses you get and take action to improve where needed.
Train your team. Remember the well-circulated anecdote about a manager who lamented, “It’s awful the way we spend all kinds of money training employees and then they leave.” The owner responded, “It would be worse if we didn’t train them and they stayed.” Do a needs assessment of your staff, then establish an annual budget and schedule for training. As a side benefit, you are likely to discover that company-provided training is seen as a fringe benefit by career-minded employees, leading to retention of the best and brightest.
As you consider these points, keep in mind that services need to be kept fresh. Be sensitive to your experiences when you spend your own money. Let your service imagination be stimulated by something that happens when you get your car fixed, when you are on vacation, or when you buy groceries. No matter how well your company serves customers today, your service wisdom will increase over time.
Carol Smith offers customer service assessment, consulting, and training programs for home builders. She can be reached at csmithhomeaddress@att.net.
